Is Christianity And Judaism A Monotheistic Religion?
By gewcew23
@gewcew23 (8007)
United States
February 21, 2010 10:18am CST
I am sure that everyone that will read this post has heard or read this statement, "The worlds three major monotheistic religions, Christianity, Judaism, and Islam". My point of this post is to say that statement is not correct but only Islam is a monotheistic religion. Now to clarify I am not saying that Islam is the one true faith, I am just say Christianity and Judaism are polytheistic religions, with no biases.
All of the Christian denominations and Jewish sects accept the five books of Moses to be God inspired, so there is the lowest common denominator. In Genesis 1:26 And God said, Let US make man in our image, after our likeness, notice the usage of the word us which is plural. Who would make up the us, well Christians would say Jesus and the Holy Spirit, but as far as I know Jews do not believe in the divinity of Jesus and do not accept a Holy Spirit. To people of the Jewish faith who are the members of this us group?
Christianity has a problem trying to stay under the monotheistic umbrella because of these two other divine beings called Jesus and the Holy Spirit. An argument is created for the complex trinity, three Gods in on, but would that not mean that God has multiple personalities?
Before anyone says, that I found one odd ball verse from the Bible, other verses are, Genesis 3:22 and Genesis 11:7 that speaks about this us group.
3 people like this
5 responses
@ronaldinu (12422)
• Malta
22 Feb 10
I think you don't have your facts right about Christianity. There is only one God not three gods. Each religion has it element of mystery and it is act of faith to believe in such thing.
The Trinity is the term employed to signify the central doctrine of the Christian religion — the truth that in the unity of the Godhead there are Three Persons, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, these Three Persons being truly distinct one from another.
1 person likes this
@gewcew23 (8007)
• United States
22 Feb 10
So if their is only one God then who is US, granted you could just copy the answer from above but I would like your answer.
Three egg may be all egg but they are still three eggs. The Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit might all be God but simple math states that adds up to three Gods. Just to prove this Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane was praying to His Father. If Jesus and His Father where just the same then why pray to your self. Another example is Jesus is always seen up in Heaven sitting to the right of the Father, if they are just one then Jesus would been seen connected to the Father. If the Holy Spirit is just the same a the other two then why is the term filled with the Holy Spirit not just simply filled with God?
@ronaldinu (12422)
• Malta
22 Feb 10
One requires faith in order to believe in the Trinity mystery. Every religion has its own dogma. One of the brightest person on earth St. Augustine tried to understand this mystery. He saw a vision of a small child playing with a seashell near the sea, The child was gather water in the seashell and filling a hole in the rocks. He asked this boy what he was doing, and the boy replied that he was putting the sea water in this small hole. St. Augustine remarked that it was impossible. The small child replied...it is also impossible to understand God's Trinity mystery.
@GADHISUNU (2162)
• India
21 Feb 10
I would still go with the statement Judaism, Christianity and Islam are the three monotheistic religions. The presence of Moses and other prophets or the OT being treated as God-given to Moses does not make Judaism polytheistic religions by any stretch of imagination. One could only say, Islam is very vocal about its stand on monotheism, whereas J & C do not overemphasize this point as frequently as the Islamic Scripture does.
1 person likes this
@GADHISUNU (2162)
• India
22 Feb 10
One should not be carried away too much by the words of The Scriptures(although the poster below has, as you have rightly appreciated, explained the nuances of the linguistic structure of Hebrew)- the one-and-only-ness of God in YHWH shines clear. Well, {B]I am[/B]sure of this. So also in Christianity, Jesus as Son of God has been raised to a status of God( in some denominations at least), the ONE undivided God is clear through. You might want me to provide Scriptural References.Excuse me, since The Bible is not a Scripture that I read on a daily basis, I will not be able to do this. And above all as a Hindu I am wont to give Scripture the only necessary stress that need be.
Islam's Scripture Al' Qur An on the other hand emphasizes the Unity of God and non-partnering of His Unique State- by including several statements as part of the [I]duas[/I] asking for forgiveness when such happens unintentionally, and strength for future avoidance.
The explanation, given for Judaism has triggered and I am able to see some parallels to some of the concepts in Hinduism- that is interesting.
As an avid student of Comparative Religion, why, the Structure of Religion(s), I find the interesting ways in which man's relationship to God has been stated in each of world's religions. To me these are more important than the finer details.
1 person likes this
@urbandekay (18278)
•
22 Feb 10
Christianity is certainly Monotheistic, Islam is not.
Christianity holds there is one God and that Jesus and the holy spirit are one and the same with God. God being omnipotent necessarily has both finite and infinite potentialities, to our finite human minds only the finite nature of God is understandable. Thus God is one but will appear to have both finite and infinite natures, will appear as we but be one.
Islam holds the Quran is eternal, and uncreated and also deify prophets making them polytheistic
all the best urban
1 person likes this
@Rollo1 (16679)
• Boston, Massachusetts
21 Feb 10
There are many words used to denote "God" in the Tanakh. In Genesis, where it is translated "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth", and "let US make man" the Hebrew word used for God is Elohim which means God but is also plural. This indicates a plurality and a oneness at the same time in that the -him suffix makes the word plural but it takes a singular verb as one doing the action, not many. It is modified by singular adjectives, not plural.
This fits well with the concept of the Trinity, three Gods in One, or unity. In the Targanum Jonathan (rabbinical writings) when the scripture refers to God performing an action, it is translated "God did thus and so by the word of God". This fits well with the concept of Jesus as the Word of God, or as explained in John, the creative force. John tells us that not a thing that was made, was made without Him (Jesus). The Holy Spirit may be found in Genesis 1:2, the Spirit of God moved on the waters - Ruach Elohim in Hebrew.
Judaism does not accept Jesus as Messiah, but in Micah 5:2 it explains that the Messiah (who is not yet come) exists in "owlam" or "everlasting", with God.
"But thou, Bethlehem Ephratah, [though] thou be little among the thousands of Judah, [yet] out of thee shall he come forth unto me [that is] to be ruler in Israel; whose goings forth [have been] from of old, from everlasting."
God is the one in everlasting, or a place outside of time - that is, a place outside the physical universe which is the only place time exists. Therefore, Messiah is with God, before His incarnation on Earth. Again this agrees with John and the rest of the New Testament writings about Christ.
Because these things are in the Old Testament, they are part of the foundations of Judaism. Because Judaism is the foundation of Christianity, these concepts hold true in Christianity.
Both are monotheistic religions but both recognize God as being plural and yet One. Of the three you mentioned, only Islam does not believe in the plurality existing in one God.
1 person likes this
@TheMetallion (1834)
• United States
21 Feb 10
Judaism recognizes that there are Gods other than Yhvh, but is monotheistic in the sense that it commands its adherents to worship only Yhvh.
1 person likes this
